The repurposed Victorian dock

Of the many construction and renovation projects taking place in football and other sports stadia across the UK, Everton's is surely one of the most innovative. The transformation of Bramley-Moore Dock in Liverpool, from a site that has lain unused since 1988 into a £500 million waterfront stadium for the Merseyside club, is a fine example of the advanced planning, design and construction skills that make the UK a world leader in the industry. 

Laing O'Rourke has now been appointed as the contractor, whose task it will be to deliver the completion stage of the project. Under the agreement construction costs will be locked in. The new contract is the latest of three that have governed the relationship between the club and the contractor. The Pre-Contract Services Agreement was executed in February 2021 followed later that year by the Enabling Work Contract, which made comprehensive provision for preparatory work including the mammoth task of filling in the dock with over 450,000 cubic metres of fluidised sand. The final contract enables any further preparations as well as the construction of the stadium itself and all the site's public realm.

Bramley-Moore Dock was opened in 1848 and remained in use for 140 years. Its retaining walls and hydraulic tower are Grade-II listed, and therefore will be sensitively and imaginatively incorporated into the new building thus ensuring that the new development maintains its historic role in enhancing Liverpool's 19th century prosperity. The 1980s were a low point for the city, but the Everton stadium follows many years of successful regeneration. Laing O'Rourke have been chosen not only for the quality of their bid but also because of their exceptional track record.

Denise Barrett-Baxendale is the Chief Executive of Everton FC and she explained the appointment: "Our agreement with Laing O'Rourke follows on from last year's pre-contract services and enabling works agreements, and brings clarity on the overall costs of our new stadium. We are now able to lock-in construction costs, while also benefiting from Laing O' Rourke's economies of scale in what is an ever-fluctuating marketplace. Our new agreement signifies that we have the utmost confidence in Laing O'Rourke, who are using the very best digital engineering expertise and industry-leading knowledge of modern construction methods to bring our stadium vision to life."

Two new logistics contracts from Segro

Segro is a specialist property investment and development company with a policy of focusing on edge of town flexible commercial space. Its logistics and business park projects have been immensely successful, and it has just announced the awarding of contracts for the construction of two major business centres. Once is located in Croydon to the south east of London, and the other is near Kettering in the Midlands. The successful contractors are Glencar and Winvic.

Glencar has been appointed to build Segro Park in Croydon on a seven-acre site off the A236. The overall size of the distribution and industrial space will be 155,000 square feet, consisting of units ranging from 5,000 to 85,000 square feet. The development will be built to EPC Grade A standards, and incorporate several sustainability features. This is the second time Segro and Glencar have worked together.

Glencar's MD for London and the South, Roy Jones, welcomed Segro's endorsement of the St Albans-based firm: "This instruction serves to reinforce Glencar's continued expansion across London and the South and within the fast-expanding last-mile urban logistics sector."

At the same time, Segro has reached agreement with Winvic to carry out construction work on plots 2 and 3 of Segro Park, Kettering Gateway. UMC Architects have designed two sheds of 100,000 and 150,000 square feet respectively. The £107.5 million contract will require 120 skilled construction workers, and when complete will create 7,500 jobs. It follows a collaboration between Winvic and Segro on a similar scheme near Castle Donington in the East Midlands.